


Bend in the River (it was always you and me)

by wheredwellthe_brave_atheart



Series: Out of This Dull World [1]
Category: Artemis Fowl - Eoin Colfer
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-23
Updated: 2014-07-23
Packaged: 2018-02-10 00:56:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2004774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wheredwellthe_brave_atheart/pseuds/wheredwellthe_brave_atheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Holly, do you trust me?"<br/>"Yes - I do. More than anyone."</p><p>Fifty prompts turned into shorts for Artemis and Holly together, throughout the series and beyond.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bend in the River (it was always you and me)

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the Artemis Fowl world, created by Eoin Colfer. I do not claim ownership over the word or any characters used. I am not profiting in any way from this work, it is my own invention and for entertainment only, and it is not purported to be a part of Eoin Colfer’s official story line.
> 
> Happy reading!

-Walking-  
Artemis watched the fairy walk out the demolished doorway of Fowl Manor with half his gold in tow, and was surprised to feel a certain lack of misgivings.

-War-  
"But- but this is insanity!" spluttered Holly. "How can goblins be organizing their own revolt? They're nowhere near smart enough for that!" 

"I believe there must be some outside force at work-"

"I wasn't asking you, Mud Boy," Holly snapped impatiently. 

"He's right, though," Foaly said awkwardly. 

-Nuance-  
"You know, human, we shouldn't even be helping you at all," Holly said, crossing her arms. "You did abduct me, hold me for ransom, disable a LEP squadron, and steal our technology and our gold."

"Technicalities," Artemis shrugged.

-Just-  
Root was incredulous when he learned she'd freely given the human a gold coin, but she didn't regret it. 

-Quitting-  
"You never do quit, do you, Artemis?" she asked, glancing again at Butler's steel cryogenics unit.

The human met her gaze with steady blue-black eyes. "Not when it comes to those I care about." 

-Question-  
"It's a simple question, Holly," Artemis said calmly as they waited for the all-clear from Juliet. 

Holly lowered her helmet visor. "Yeah, well I'm still not gonna answer, and you're not gonna argue." 

Artemis sighed dramatically. Elves were so emotional. 

-Quarrel-  
"Could you two quiet down for just one minute? We're on a tight schedule here," Holly hissed into her communicator, berating Mulch and Juliet. "Honestly, Foaly, they can't stop bickering for one second! We're on a mission, for Frond's sake, this is important." 

Under the Earth's crust, Foaly heaved a heavy sigh and rolled his eyes. "Yeah," he muttered. "That must be really annoying." 

-Bane-  
"Nice to see you, as always, Foaly," Artemis said, nodding his head. "Though I must admit I do not care for the circumstances. But may I say -"

"Now, before you go making any smart comments, I do not reside in the Forbidden Forest," Foaly said, testily, assembling the mind-wiping gear. "I know what you've been reading."

Artemis quirked an eyebrow and smirked wickedly. "You've encountered this comparison before?"

"I've always felt like he looks more like Magorian, anyway," Holly piped up from beside Foaly. 

-Balcony-  
The mattress looked like a flying carpet as it fell from the hotel room - Holly, whose own grandfather had sold magic carpets, would've found it funny in other circumstances.

-Sojourn-  
Holly sprang to her feet as Koboi's voice filtered into the room - even here, protected as she was in the LEP bunker and back with her once-ally Artemis, Koboi found a way to infiltrate her safe haven. 

-Wonder-  
Artemis was too busy worrying about the starving trolls to spare much thought about the exhibit, but he stored away the information regarding the extra four Wonders to ponder at a later date - if there was to be such a day. 

-Near-  
"Holly, they're gaining on us-"

"I know," she spat through gritted teeth, white-knuckling the controls.

-Quiet-  
"Well, said Holly into the communicator, "now that we've got a moment of peace... Er, what's up?"

Artemis suppressed an eye-roll with great difficulty. "Really, Holly, I think we can do better than that, don't you?"

-Whimsy-  
"Care for a taste?" came Holly's voice from behind him, and he groaned when she revealed a cherry-red lollipop, eyes sparkling and grinning mischievously. 

-Neutral-  
"Of course I'm involved," snapped Artemis, unconcerned with the chorus of protestations from the opera patrons. "Regardless of the fact that my species is also at risk of exposing yours, my actions have directly impacted The People over the years on countless occasions. It is my responsibility to help set things right."

-Serenade-  
"Foaly, please," they winced simultaneously. 

-Stupidity-  
"Wow, you really don't know how to handle girls, do you, Mud Boy?" smirked Holly. 

Artemis obviously didn't deign that comment worthy of a response, but he blushed a deeper red than before. 

-Burning-  
Holly was dead. The fires of the volcano seared Artemis's eyes, but that wasn't why tears tracked down his cheeks. 

-Jump-  
"Holly, do you trust me?"  
"Yes - I do. More than anyone."

It was this exchange that suddenly flashed trough Holly's mind as she strapped the daemon warlocks and Artemis to her suit belt. 

It was these words that she recalled again as she later stood assembled around a bomb, waiting for it to explode at their feet, grasping Artemis's hand tight in her own. 

And it was these words that flooded her mind when she could remember how Artemis had saved her life. 

And so when Butler had opened the window of the exhibition room in Taipei 101, and the Taiwanese wind had screamed into the building as Holly took in the 508 m drop below her, it was these words that gave her the strength to launch herself and her friends into the sky. 

-Balloon-  
No. 1 giggled - or, at least, thought of giggling - at Artemis's hot-air-balloon-time-traveling analogy. Holly cracked a smile too, but Qwan remained focused on guiding their magic and shaping the tunnel.

Artemis admitted the older warlock probably had the right idea. 

-Quirks-  
Guilt-ridden and panicked as he was upon Holly's arrival at his mother's bedside, Artemis noticed with satisfaction when she cricked her neck to kick-start her magic. It was always wise to note these little habits - you never know when something like that would be important. He was always planning. 

-Virtuous-  
Artemis was desperately trying to simultaneously hold Holly's hand and to avert his gaze (and thoughts) from her one-piece. 

He wished he had chosen a different pair of undergarments that morning. 

-Breathing-  
Artemis hated to leave while Holly was unconscious. 

She could've been asleep on the earth outside the Primate House, the steady rise and fall of her chest mimicking peace and tranquility. And here he was, about to embark on some sort of caped-crusader escapade without Holly at his shoulder. 

Not to mention the, er, events in the gorilla cage. 

There was no point in stalling any longer. With a final glance, he turned and made his way towards the electricity pylons. 

-Jester-  
They knew Mulch well enough to tolerate most of his jibes, so it was, in fact, only the accidental marry-outiside-your-species quip that caused Artemis to wince. 

-Nowhere-  
"You saved me," came the whisper of breath on the back of his neck. "Thank-you." 

Electricity was sent coursing down his spine at her voice. It was soft and unguarded for once; she was open in the safety of invisibility and vulnerable from his display of devotion. 

A kiss on his cheek came from no one. 

-Jewel-  
The diamond shards of the CamFoil shimmered and shone in Holly's eyes as she sailed through the crisp Irish air over the Atlantic Ocean, content with the whisper of wings on her back and the weight of Artemis Fowl in her arms. 

-Whiskey/Rum-  
"We can't share drink with humans, remember?" Holly said regretfully. 

Artemis withdrew the hand offering the bottle of Irish whiskey and averted his gaze. "Yes, of course, my apologies," he said, suppressing the stab of hot shame that came with this umpteenth reminder of their division. 

-Birthday-  
"Happy Birthday, Arty!" Holly crowed, punching him on the shoulder. "15! The big 1-5! Well, only technically. Should I say the big 1-8? Should I be worried for the state of Ireland's government?"

Holly was babbling because of the way Artemis shuddered under her touch, and the way he winced as she spouted off numbers. 

-Waste/Wasteland-  
Holly took in the mass destruction of Vinyaya's squadron - watched the smoke and flames choke the Icelandic sky, all filled with the ashes of her friend and mentor, and vowed vengeance. 

-Jousting-  
"What's next?" Foaly asked, rolling his eyes. "Is 'e gonna write you a sonnet? Maybe challenge me to a duel?"

"Nonsense, noble steed," Artemis/Orion said innocently. "In the event of a duel, I shall of course ride astride you in the honored sport of jousting."

Holly buried her face in her hands. 

-Solitary-  
Ensconced as he was in his own brain, Artemis contemplated creating a tennis ball to beat against his study walls, and almost chuckled. 

-Worry-  
"If he's gone and died," fumed Holly, kicking over a Med-Pack strewn across the floor of the pod, "I'll kill him!"

-Sordid-  
Holly couldn't speak for laughing. "'Violet Tsirblou'?" she gasped upon entering Argon's clinic. "Oh my gods, Artemis!"

Artemis shot an extremely dirty look in Butler's direction, but the manservant merely grinned and said, "Don't look at me - Foaly found a copy on the Internet." 

-Defeat-  
"No!" shouted Artemis. "We can make it, Holly!" He refused to be bested by Opal Koboi in this manner - he would not allow himself to be trapped beneath the earth when his family was in mortal danger above ground. 

He gripped Holly's shoulder with all the panic and determination he possessed. 

"Holly, please," he said. Nothing more. 

Holly groaned as she flicked the controls of the Cupid to manual and screeched off the tracks and under the door.

-Natural-  
Crickets. Honest-to-gods-d'arviting crickets! They had faced goblins and hit men and trolls and daemons and enthralled jumbo pixies and several psychotic super-villains, and they were to be eaten alive by Mother Nature's own Disney-affiliated insects. 

Not even a venomous kind; black-widow spiders, or scorpions. Not even the childhood-nightmare kind; giant beetles, or hideous moths. No. 

Crickets. 

-Valiant-  
Moonlight filtered through the crippled aircraft, illuminating Holly's elfin profile. She grappled with the resisting controls and made a passing quip about their current life-threatening situation, and Artemis found he could not manage to look away. Holly truly was never so beautiful as when their lives hung in the balance - she radiated determination and power, her skill and strength shining clearly where others would falter. 

He was completely captivated by her. She was simply magical. 

 

He would miss her so. Perhaps most of all. 

He wrenched his gaze from her face and looked out the front shield once more, directing all of his concentrations on the plan. 

-Share-  
"The Earth cannot be divided amongst humans and fairies any longer!" shrieked Opal. 

"You're absolutely correct," Artemis admitted. "It's time we learned to share once again." 

-Breaking-  
Holly couldn't breathe as she was forced to watch the light die behind Artemis's eyes - as she watched her dearest friend crumple, empty, to the ground. Butler's arms shook around her, and she was only vaguely aware of the keening sobs that were being ripped from her throat. 

-Belief-  
"Timmy, darling, I know it's a lot to take in-"

Artemis Sr sank, shaking, into a chair. "My son is dead. My son spent seven years saving the entire planet on countless occasions with the aid of- of- Leprechauns and Centaurs and Sprites and Elves. With mythical creatures."

He took a deep, shuddering breath, and then looked Holly straight in the eye. 

"My son is a hero," he declared. 

-Bias-  
"Don't let Artemis call it, he's completely biased!" Juliet cried from their improvised ring. 

"Well, Butler certainly can't be the judge, either." Holly retorted, stretching her shoulders in preparation for the match. 

-Smirk-  
Gods, that smirk was infuriating. 

And he knew it, too, and used it against her - to annoy her, to incite her, to antagonize her, to win an argument, to start an argument, to let her know she was wrong, to let her know someone else was wrong, to let her know she was right, to let her in on a secret. 

 

And to turn her on. 

 

But that came later. 

-Weddings-  
Artemis snickered incessantly throughout Trouble and Lili's entire ceremony - to be fair, that shade of purple really was ridiculous, not to mention the miniature figurines of the happy couple dispersed throughout the hall, or Lili's tiara - and Holly sat beside him and elbowed him in the ribs (admittedly holding back her own laughter) whenever his chuckles reached more obnoxious volumes. 

-Wishes-  
"Aren't fairies generally involved in the occupation of wish fulfillment?" Artemis persuaded her. 

Holly laughed throatily. "Oh, I suppose. It's a bit of a stretch, but you're cute when you're trying to flirt." 

-Blessing-  
"Butler, old friend, there's a matter of some import I wish to discuss with you. I was deliberating on whether to go to my parents first, but, in this circumstance, you have known the individual in question a great deal longer, and, consequently, I felt your input would be rather more suited to the situation at hand. Additionally, I value your opinion immensely, and I trust you implicitly, and therefore do not need to be concerned with the news spreading in a manner that would be unseemly, so-"

Butler interrupted him with a sigh. "Artemis, what is it you're trying to ask?"

"For your blessing, old friend," Artemis said, holding up a gold ring. 

-Soliloquy-  
Holly did eventually discover one surefire way to shut Artemis up - he couldn't exactly spout science when his mouth was otherwise occupied. 

-Victory-  
"No matter how many times we think we've reached the limit on saving the world, something always comes up," Artemis chuckled, reaching for Holly's hand. 

"And we both wouldn't have it any other way," grinned Holly, activating her wings. 

-Horizon-  
They soared through the open air together, and daybreak flooded their craft as Artemis and Holly chased the horizon.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought! Hope you enjoyed :)


End file.
